Which court case struck down the silver platter doctrine?

Which court case struck down the silver platter doctrine?

• A. Mapp v. Ohio
• B. Wolfe v. Colorado
• C. Terry v. Ohio
• D. United States v. Leon

Answer: (B)

The question tests how the exclusionary rule applies to the states and the fate of the silver platter practice. The silver platter doctrine said that evidence illegally obtained by state officials could still be used in federal prosecutions, effectively letting federal cases benefit from state-law violations. That practice was ended when the Court held that the exclusionary rule applies to the states through the Fourteenth Amendment. In Mapp v. Ohio, the Supreme Court ruled that illegally obtained evidence is inadmissible in state courts, incorporating the exclusionary rule to the states. With that incorporation, the silver platter approach could no longer stand, because state evidence seized in violation of the Fourth Amendment could not be used in state prosecutions, and the federal-state transfer of such evidence became moot. The other cases involve different Fourth Amendment issues—Wolfe v. Colorado addressed whether the exclusionary rule applied to the states prior to incorporation, Terry v. Ohio concerns stop-and-frisk, and United States v. Leon establishes the good-faith exception.

The question tests how the exclusionary rule applies to the states and the fate of the silver platter practice. The silver platter doctrine said that evidence illegally obtained by state officials could still be used in federal prosecutions, effectively letting federal cases benefit from state-law violations.

That practice was ended when the Court held that the exclusionary rule applies to the states through the Fourteenth Amendment. In Mapp v. Ohio, the Supreme Court ruled that illegally obtained evidence is inadmissible in state courts, incorporating the exclusionary rule to the states. With that incorporation, the silver platter approach could no longer stand, because state evidence seized in violation of the Fourth Amendment could not be used in state prosecutions, and the federal-state transfer of such evidence became moot.

The other cases involve different Fourth Amendment issues—Wolfe v. Colorado addressed whether the exclusionary rule applied to the states prior to incorporation, Terry v. Ohio concerns stop-and-frisk, and United States v. Leon establishes the good-faith exception.